SOUTHERN INDIANA — The statewide decline in the number of high school graduates attending college is being seen on a local level in Southern Indiana.
At Indiana University Southeast, enrollment has been declining significantly over the past decade. Kelly Ryan, executive vice chancellor of academic affairs, said both IUS and the state will face a “long-term recovery” to address the issue.
“We’re no exception to this larger shift among the new generation and of course among older adults in terms of their desire to seek higher education,” she said.
Last week, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education released its Indiana College Readiness Report. The report shows that only 53% of high school graduates pursued college or post-secondary training in 2020, a decrease of 6% compared with the previous year.
Indiana’s rate is lower than the national average, which was 63% in 2020. The state’s college-going rate has decreased each year since 2015, when the commission reported that about 65% of high school graduates went on to college.
The Indiana Commission for Higher Education categorizes the 2020 rate as the “lowest rate — and sharpest decline — in at least a generation.”
“Indiana’s sharp one-year college-going decline is alarming, and we have to treat it as such,” Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Chris Lowery said in a news release. “We know individual lives and the state’s economy depend on and thrive with an educated society.”
Ryan said the pandemic and financial concerns are among the factors affecting decisions to enroll in higher education. The Indiana Commission for Higher Education’s report attributed increasing “doubt about the value of higher education, particularly considering the cost.”
“Our local population is really going to have to push the messaging around college that it’s worth it, and deferring your dreams isn’t a great idea,” Ryan said.
In the fall of 2011, more than 7,000 students were enrolled at IUS, but enrollment has continue to decrease over the past decade.
In the spring of 2022, the enrollment at IUS was about 3,500 students compared to more than 4,000 in the spring of 2021. Enrollment in the fall of 2021 was 4,055 compared to 4,678 in the fall of 2020.
Ryan notes that campus leaders are expecting similar trends this year.
“Fall budgets had to be decreased because of this new kind of wind of change in the community — making sure our budgets are in alignment with the population that’s actually going to attend IU Southeast is really important, it’s part of our promise to the public to keep costs down, but it’s also part of us maintaining the intellectual rigor and vitality of our community to make sure we’re not overstretched,” she said.
Ryan said higher education offers “undeniable benefits to both the individual, the family and the local community,” including economic and health outcomes.
“When a community like ours starts declining in comparison with the rest of the nation, we have to stand up and take notice,” she said. “We have to have conversations with the people we know in our communities — in high school, with family members — and if there’s the possibility for them to attend, I think we need to attend to it. We need to make sure we’re having those conversations with youth and adults…it’s still a really important pathway for our state and for our community.”
Eddie Bobbitt, post-secondary counselor at New Albany High School, said about 50% of the graduating class at NAHS is heading to a four-year college, and about 15% to 20% are heading to a two-year college, according to Bobbitt.
These numbers are typical for the school, he said. As he looked at the statewide numbers, he wasn’t surprised to see the decline in college enrollment.
He notes that many students are looking at career paths that do not require a four-year degree.
“I haven’t noticed it as much at New Albany, but I will say the pandemic has caused a lot of people to pause for a second and look at the return of investment of a four-year degree versus looking at trades and apprenticeships,” he said. “And, I honestly think it’s a good thing.”
Floyd Central High School Principal Rob Willman said about 85% of graduates are going to either four-year or two-year colleges, and he hasn’t seen a dramatic change over the years.
He said the availability of dual credit courses encourages students to pursue higher education, since they are often graduating with college credits. The amount of dual credits earned by students has increased over the years at Floyd Central.
“We’ve really stepped up with the dual credits, and that’s one of the best things we have going,” he said. “That’s really helping kids.”
Bobbitt served for 10 years as an academic counselor at the University of Louisville, where he continues to teach as an adjunct professor. Before coming to NAHS as a counselor, he worked at Prosser Career Education Center as a college/ career counselor.
He emphasizes that there are economic benefits for people to pursue high-demand jobs that might not require two- or four-year college degrees. For example, the state needs HVAC technicians and diesel technicians “in order for our economy to thrive,” he said.
Bobbitt also notes that “not all degrees are the same in terms of earning potential.”
“For so long, the view was almost it’s either higher ed or alternative ed instead of just education after high school,” he said. “Obviously we want our population to be educated, but that doesn’t mean a four-year degree per se…if that means that more students are looking at apprenticeships or the military, that’s still really positive.”
He said student loan debt, rising costs of higher education and the pandemic have all played major roles in students’ decisions about what to do after high school graduation.
“I did have more conversations this year and previous years of the cost of higher education…there were some changes of, OK, instead of going to IU Bloomington, maybe I will go get a four-year degree at IU Southeast because it’s much cheaper,” Bobbitt said. “So they are still pursuing a four-year degree, but they are just looking at a more cost-effective way to do that, and I think that’s a good thing.”
Quality of instruction may have also played a role in students’ decisions whether to attend college. As colleges switched to virtual instruction, students may have questioned whether their investment was worth it, he said.
IUS offers the “most affordable four-year degree in the region,” Ryan said, and the campus has recently increased scholarship opportunities for students. IUS is also offering a new dual admission program in partnership with Ivy Tech Community College.
It is also important to focus on how college can “lead to greater career outcomes,” and IUS has been pushing its opportunities for “applied learning” that can help students in their future careers, Ryan said The Indiana Commission for Higher Education’s report recommended a number of actions to increase college enrollment among high school graduates, including enrolling all eligible students in the 21st Century Scholars Program, requiring high school seniors to apply for FAFSA and increasing funding for the state’s Frank O’Bannon Grant.
IUS officials are concerned not just about new admissions, but also retaining students, Ryan said.
Scholarship incentives for students to re-enroll are among the ways the campus has been encouraging students to complete their degree at IUS.
Ryan emphasized the health and economic challenges students have faced over the past couple of years amid the pandemic, saying “we want to do whatever we can to make college continue to be affordable and engaging for them.”
“In terms of re-enrollment, we’re trying to make sure that students who decided to attend stay,” she said. “The nationwide stories about student disengagement are true, and it’s been a really difficult couple of years. Students are facing burnout, they’re facing increased work schedules… there are so many competing priorities for our students, and we want to make sure we are among them.”
Many students are working part-time jobs, and they have seen increased hours, Ryan said. These “competing priorities” can put a strain on students.
“When students are being asked to do more, it comes at a price for them and their personal life, and unfortunately they’re choosing the immediate situation versus over the longer-term awards of higher education,” she said.
Bobbitt said the goal at NAHS is to lower the cost for any student to go to a two- or four-year school, including helping them apply for scholarships and encouraging them to earn college credits in high school.
This year, the graduating class of NAHS earned a record amount of merit-based scholarships at about $18 million, which does not include needbased financial aid.
He also noted that 22 NAHS students earned associate’s degrees upon graduating high school. He wants students to be able to graduate sooner or maximize their time in a four-year college.
“So maybe they go there, and instead of getting one degree, maybe they get two degrees in four years because they’ve taken care of so many of their credits while in high school,” Bobbitt said.
Ryan encourages students to investigate their options and “make sure they’re doing what is best for them in the long-term.”
“I think short-term thinking can undercut some of the choices that people make about whether or not to attend higher education, because it is time and energy spent that ultimately will reward you…but you have to make sacrifices,” she said. “I think you have to investigate what’s right for you, and you have to investigate what is the cost in actuality.”
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